Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average Shares Fall as Tech Stocks Track Nasdaq Lower (UPDATE 1)

Reuters

12:14 JST, November 21, 2024 (updated at 16:35 JST)

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese shares closed lower on Thursday as technology stocks tracked the Nasdaq’s overnight decline, while financials rose amid bets for a Bank of Japan interest rate hike.

The Nikkei fell 0.85% to 38,026.17, while the broader Topix slipped 0.57% to 2,682.81.

“Chip-related shares tracked U.S. equities lower, but overall, the market struggled to find market-moving cues after Nvidia reported its earnings,” said Shingo Ide, chief equity strategist at NLI Research Institute.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed lower on Wednesday, taking a break from the prior session’s rally, as investors worried about escalating Russia-Ukraine tensions and weak results from Target .

AI darling Nvidia fell 0.76% during the regular trading session ahead of its results on Wednesday. It fell further after the bell, as its fourth-quarter revenue forecast failed to meet lofty expectations of some investors.

Nvidia’s outlook is key for the Nikkei share average, which is heavily influenced by movements in chip-related stocks such as chip-testing equipment maker Advantest.

On Thursday, Advantest fell 1.64% and chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron lost 0.41%.

Technology start-up investor SoftBank Group fell 1.1%.

Financial shares rose as bets for a BOJ policy rate hike lifted bond yields.

Mizuho Financial Group rose 1.32% and Resona Holdings climbed 1.84%. The banking index edged up 0.18% and was one of the three sub-indexes that rose among the 33 industry groups on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Tokyo Gas rose 4.94% to become the biggest percentage gainer on the Nikkei, following a 13% surge in the previous session. U.S. activist investor Elliott Management has taken a 5.03% stake in the country’s biggest city gas provider.